


You And

by she_is_rysn



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: Absolutely taking requests on who to do next, Contains spoilers and dialogue for 10 Heart events, One Chapter Per Character, Other, POV Second Person
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-28
Updated: 2020-09-25
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:14:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 5,931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23895913
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/she_is_rysn/pseuds/she_is_rysn
Summary: This character thinks you're really special! This is the story of your first kiss.
Relationships: Abigail/Player (Stardew Valley), Emily/Player (Stardew Valley), Haley/Player (Stardew Valley), Harvey/Player (Stardew Valley), Leah/Player (Stardew Valley), Penny/Player (Stardew Valley), Sam/Player (Stardew Valley), Sebastian/Player (Stardew Valley), Shane/Player (Stardew Valley)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 66





	1. You and Shane

“I just wanted to say...thanks for sticking with me through everything. My anxiety, my depression, you know…”

Shane is looking down and to the side, heavy brow knit together in self-deprecation. You notice for maybe the hundredth time the way his eyelashes nearly brush his cheeks when he does this. 

You reach carefully for his shoulder or his arm or his hand, and he softens against your touch, looking back at you with a bashful smile. It gets harder and harder to remember his old permanent scowl, though you’ll get a grumpy reminder from time to time.

Shane takes your hand, and it’s funny feeling the different ways your hands are calloused.

“You’ve been a really good friend to me.”

When Shane says this, he looks at you as if you might laugh at him or take everything back. And, because you can’t come up with a single sentence or string of words to reassure him to the contrary, you kiss him instead.

Shane’s stubble scrapes against your cheeks (or catches on your beard if you have one) as his fingers lace with yours. You both simultaneously reach for the nape of the other’s neck, inhaling each other with deep satisfaction because nothing has felt as comfortable and right as this kiss in maybe your entire life. The backs of your fingers brush against that hideous threadbare hoodie, which makes you think about how he would look  _ not  _ in that hoodie. So you break carefully and reluctantly from that kiss, and, while holding the gaze of his huge brown eyes, you let go of his hand and withdraw your fingers from his hair. You use your sense of touch to navigate across his shoulders and chest to locate the tiny, cold zipper pull right over his heart and start tugging it downward, which means you get to watch him understand what you’re doing, which means you get to see the resulting flicker of desire that crosses beneath those unnaturally long lashes. 

This time Shane initiates the kiss, rolling his shoulders to help you pull off the sweater. It’s such an unremarkable motion, but you’ve never seen or felt him do something like it before. You realize you want to see and feel it many, many more times in your life.

Shane takes his own turn on your jacket, wordlessly glancing at you for permission which you wordlessly grant. It’s been so long since either of you spoke that your breathing is starting to feel like a language of its own. He works so carefully and slowly, just like you, and anticipation rises in your throat as his fingertips slide the jacket off your shoulders. You giggle bashfully as you reach behind yourself to tug the sleeves off your wrists, and you can feel the warmth of his hands just a little better with one less layer of clothing between you. 

You didn’t realize how much you wanted this until now, and it turns out you really, really wanted it. 

You and Shane clutch each other tightly, again almost simultaneously, and as your kisses grow broader and more exploratory, your hands make journeys of their own across shoulder blades, elbows, spines, waists and hips. 

“I can’t believe this is real,” Shane murmurs into your lips or your collarbone or your ear, and you hold him tighter to prove that it is. There has never been anyone or anything so precious to you, and as your fingers brush the soft skin beneath his collar or the tiny curls at the base of his skull, you understand with absolute certainty that the happiness of the man in your arms is the only metric you will ever use to measure your life from now on. Wealth, crops, status -- none of it matters if Shane isn’t there, and if he’s not in love with you. 

Fortunately for you, he is. And he is. 


	2. You and Leah

Leah’s one-room cabin smells like wood and spices, and her cheeks are flushed with pride following the wild success of her art show. You think about the sculpture that sits in your home, the one she gave you. The one that’s  _ for _ you. Sometimes when you walk past you catch the fragrance of the wood itself, and it smells just like Leah’s house, like Leah. 

Like Leah, who is practically glowing right now, looking simultaneously more like a goddess and more like herself than you’ve ever seen her before. You realize that you helped make it possible for her to show this side of herself, and it fills you with awe and responsibility. An incongruous flash of rage streaks across this realization when you consider anyone making her feel a molecule less than the force of nature she is, let alone that idiot Kel. That anyone at all would attempt to dim the wild spark of her talent is unconscionable. 

Leah clears her throat softly, and you wonder how long you’ve been staring. 

“I want to thank you again for encouraging me to do the show,” she says, tucking a lock of red-gold hair behind one ear in a way that makes you desperate to do it for her. “It means a lot, having a friend who believes in me like that.”

You catch the tiniest wince when she says “friend,” a miniscule crinkle of the nose that is both very adorable and all the encouragement you were hoping for. “Friend” isn’t the right word anymore, and you both know it. 

You are too many steps away from Leah to do what you wish to, and your cheeks grow hot in the dissonance between your desire and your reality. You realize you have a look of panicked helplessness on your face, and thankfully Leah interprets this correctly. She approaches you with beatific calm, kissing you softly on the lips as her fingertips brush one cheek. Leah’s eyes shine with what might be excitement or pride, and she nods at you for confirmation, waiting for you to return the gesture before kissing you again for a glorious moment. Her lips are warm and  soft, and the spicy aroma you noticed earlier seems to be radiating right off her skin. You find the courage to run your fingers behind one ear, and the fact that her hair is already neatly tucked there does not detract one jot from how much you enjoy the activity. You hope in your soul for a thousand more chances to perform this small action before you die. 

Leah laughs softly into your lips, a quick exhale that mimics the rush of the river just outside her door. Your hand slides through her hair as the other slips silently around her waist, as easily as if you had been crafted for the sole purpose of holding her. It makes your embrace feel as intentional as a sculpture. 

“Thanks, friend,” Leah whispers. She kisses you again. 


	3. You and Emily

“Um, you don’t mind sharing a sleeping bag with me, do you?”

Through the tent, the light of the campfire flickers faintly across Emily’s cheek, her vibrant locks appearing jet black in the darkness. The question is a dare, just like her invitation to camp in the woods in the middle of the night. Emily has always wanted to know whether you’re down to get weird and do the unexpected, and it turns out you are. Or maybe you’re just down to do whatever Emily wants to do. Either way, you’ve clearly passed the test. 

You think about the fire outside that should probably be safely extinguished, about the fact that you and that bear have a good working relationship and you could probably hop out real quick to get the other sleeping bag, all the things that might cause you to excuse yourself from this flickering darkness with this remarkable woman, and they all seem like foolish wastes of time, because Emily wants to share a sleeping bag with you. 

Emily wants to share a sleeping bag with you.

You shake your head no, you don’t mind, and she smiles, angling away from you slightly as she pulls off her shoes. You wonder why she’s doing that until you realize why she’s doing that, and you kick off your own shoes with such vigor that one of them flies across the tent, thumping twice as it hits the wall and then the ground. 

She laughs that sparkly laugh as if this is much funnier than it actually is. You find yourself doing the same, because you’re so happy you feel like floating. Suddenly, you understand the joyous impulse behind the bizarre choreography Emily showed you that one time, and the body that invented it is so dazzlingly close right now you can hardly believe it. You ruminate briefly on how the fabric of her dress felt under your fingers that time, and nearly salivate imagining getting to do this again, but  _ more _ . 

You kneel down to unroll the sleeping bag at the same time as Emily, nearly bumping heads. It’s such a cliche that you both burst into giggles again, except this time your faces are closer and you’re shaking with anticipation. A wave of panic or adrenaline surges inside you all the way up to your eyes and a second later you have tackled Emily to the ground, turning at the last second to protect her from the stony, twiggy earth with your own body. 

Before you can catch your breath, Emily is kissing you. You realize this at the same time you feel her heartbeat against your chest, shift your knees between hers as her body settles on yours, and it’s almost too much to take in at once. You can taste every atom of her weird, wild exuberance on her lips, and you realize that Emily will ride this energy with you as far as you want to go. 

How far  _ do  _ you want to go? This is happening very fast.

With your head pressed against the ground, it’s awkward to break from the kiss, but she takes the cue quicker than you expected. Emily props herself up against your chest, brushing her fingers across your cheek. Smiling mischievously, she gives a quick peck to your temple before climbing off, and you feel nearly frozen without her heat against you. A loud  _ zip _ echoes in the tent as Emily nearly tears open the sleeping bag, slipping inside. 

Turning back to you, she holds it open in an invitation, or maybe it’s another dare. 

Either way, you accept. 


	4. You and Abigail

Standing before you in the darkness of the mine, Abigail looks like the cover of a fantasy novel: a violet-haired warrior with torchlight flickering across her pale face, sword at her side. Seeing her without her customary defiance, you wish you could infuse her with the courage she feels she lacks, to take her hand, charge down that ladder and uncover mounds of treasure together, fighting monsters back-to-back. It wouldn’t be the first time you daydreamed about this, of sitting exhausted beside her against the wall of a cavern, splattered with slime and gem dust as you magically produce a slice of her favorite chocolate cake to share. 

But that moment won’t come today. And that’s fine, because every moment you get to spend with Abigail is still better than all the others. She takes a deep breath, then looks at you with blue eyes that are all the more disarming in the dancing firelight. 

“I… I really like you…” she says. You start, wondering how long you’ve just been standing there, looking at her. “And not just as a friend. You know that, right?”

This woman — this fantasy heroine — is telling you she has feelings for you. The revelation makes you gasp and smile brighter than your glow ring. Abigail’s hair falls over one eye as she laughs softly, looking away. 

“I can’t believe I’m actually saying this,” she almost whispers, and you are suddenly frustrated not to be closer to those perfect lips. Her fingers worry at the hilt of her sword, and you want so badly to be the weapon in her hand. 

“But I can’t keep it in anymore,” Abigail announces so loudly that her voice warps and echoes in the cavern, surprising you both enough to exchange a startled smile.

“I’ve felt this way for a long time,” she admits, looking at you expectantly. 

_“Me too!”_ You want to shout, but you don’t because you remember how strangely sound bounces in this cave, and you are too filled with relief and anticipation to come up with any alternative. All this time, you’ve been hoping you weren’t imagining her excitement when she saw you around town, the way she would watch you walk away. You wondered if she ever kept her flute on hand the way you did your harp, just in case it should ever come in handy on some rainy afternoon. You think of the way her fascination melted into panic as you knelt together over the spirit board‘s message. You kicked yourself the entire way home for not kissing her that night. Why didn’t you kiss her?! 

You notice your own flustered silence at the same time Abigail laughs again, tension melting from her expression.

“You don’t have to say anything right now," she reassures you. "Let’s just stay here for a while.” 

The sword falls to the ground with a _clink_ as she extends her hand. You step forward and a thrilled shiver skates up your arm and down your spine the moment you touch. Here you are, standing on top of maybe miles of treasure and adventure, and none of it as precious to you as the defiant adventurer standing before you with amethyst hair and flickering eyes. A force pulls you closer, as deliberately as a magnet, and within seconds you have released each other’s hands in order to let them land elsewhere. Abigail’s lips are so, so close to yours, too close to see, and you think about the way they purse gently when she plays the flute, something you have definitely thought about before this moment. Almost as a reflex, your fingers curl through her hair, as if gliding across invisible strings. You decide that this is much, much better than playing a mini harp. 

When Abigail finally kisses you, you know that there can’t possibly be music playing but it sure feels like there should be. After all, this is the moment in the story where the heroine and her love kiss in a spooky cave, right before they take on the world together. 

First though, you kiss her again.


	5. You and Penny

Your heart is hammering in your chest as you step into the fog of the baths. For a second, you think you may be the first one here, but then the gentle slosh of moving water on the other end of the pool tells you otherwise. Penny is here, but you can’t make her out yet. As you inhale, the warm, humid air fills your lungs and clings to your skin. 

“There you are,” she murmurs. Her soft voice echoes across the tiles. 

Penny makes no move to meet you. You feel like you have entered the court of a goddess waiting patiently for you to approach and genuflect. You step into the pool’s soothing heat, legs pushing harder against the weight of the water. 

“I was worried you didn’t get my note,” she muses as you wade closer, desperate to be at her side yet also trying to maintain some semblance of composure. You finally see her through the steam that fills the room, bare shouldered in water up to her collarbone. She looks so comfortable and relaxed, without a trace of her usual harried concern. You can’t help thinking about all the parts of her that you have never seen before this moment, but Penny’s vulnerable peacefulness imparts an intimacy even deeper than simply glimpsing her in a swimsuit for the first time. 

Penny’s eyes dart to the doors as you approach. “I think we’re alone,” she says, smiling that small, sincere smile. She doesn’t have to say that -- you obviously  _ are _ alone -- but it lets you know that whatever she was planning tonight is just for you two, together. 

You are now up to your shoulders in the shallow pool, face to face with Penny. The space between you feels much farther in the water, and you briefly consider how you might move closer, if she wanted to--

Penny takes a short breath, as if gathering her courage. “I’ve been meaning to tell you for a while now, about how I feel.” She gives you a questioning look, and you nod back with all the assurance you can muster. You were hoping for this with all your heart, but now it’s  _ happening _ , and the room is so warm...you’re starting to feel dizzy. 

You snap back with a jolt as fingers brush your knee below the surface. Her eyes almost glow in the misty air, brimming with a sincerity that borders on zeal. You’ve seen how fiercely Penny protects the people she loves, and you realize with awe that  _ you _ are now one of those people. 

You cover her hand with yours, and the smile that lights up her face is the best thing you have ever seen in your whole life. 

“I can’t stop thinking about you,” Penny’s words tumble out breathlessly, “I’ve never felt this way about anyone.”

“I feel the same way about you,” you nearly shout in excitement. 

Penny says your name, and it sounds like an incantation. 

“I thought you did, but I wasn’t sure.”

Rotating her wrist, she laces her fingers with yours under the water. You wonder if she can hear your heartbeat, it feels so loud in your body. 

“You look so beautiful tonight,” she whispers, “I--”

The anticipation is too much to bear. Penny gasps as you pull her towards you by way of your interlocked hands. Taking the cue, she leans forward, pressing her warm lips to yours with breathtaking speed. You feel her heart beating against your chest as your hands close around her soft, perfect shoulders, daunted by the places they could go from there. After a full, glorious eternity, she gently breaks from the kiss and moves an arm’s length away, regarding you with eyes that seem to gaze into your soul. You can’t remember feeling this seen by anyone, ever. 

Suddenly you realize she’s giving you permission to do the same, and so you try. You see Penny's flushed cheeks, the red wisps of hair that cling to her temple and her neck, the absolute calm and self-possession that radiates from her core. Penny has always found the ones who need care, and cared for them. From this moment forward, you decide to be the one who will take care of her, if she’ll let you. 

The look you share in this ethereal mist is full of all the possibilities in the world, but the kiss you share just after it somehow contains even more. 


	6. You and Harvey

Wind tugs at your hair and clothes as you hold tight to Harvey’s hand, hundreds of feet aloft. Being in a hot air balloon would have been special all by itself, but the man standing beside you has chosen to conquer his greatest fear in order to share this experience with you. Nobody has ever done something like this for you before, not by any measure. 

You think of all the times -- too many to count at this point -- that you’ve woken up in Harvey’s office, pulled from the brink of death by his care. You owe him your life in the most literal sense, and yet now he looks to you for courage. So you squeeze his hand tightly, turning to him with a smile filled with all the reassurance you can muster. This is pretty amazing, after all. 

A sound like sheets on a clothesline catches your ear and you turn to see a flock of birds headed straight towards you. You actually do find this kind of scary, but today you are the brave one so you stick your chest out a little, shading your eyes against the rosy sky in your best impersonation of an old-timey airplane pilot as the birds speed past. When Harvey laughs at this, you also hear a shudder of panic escape. Maybe this is a good sign? Whatever it is, you’re here to protect him. 

You hear an incongruous  _ beep beep _ , and Harvey looks at you apologetically as you glance around for the source. “Oh dear, our time’s almost up,” he sighs, silencing the kind of watch that has an alarm clock and probably also a scientific calculator on it. A gust of wind flutters his tie and plasters his hair against one temple, and Harvey instinctively reaches up to hold his glasses in place. In order to do this, he has let go of your hand and is standing on his own, which makes you feel both proud and sad to no longer be touching. 

Harvey says your name, and your heart leaps in your chest at the way he is looking at you now. It reminds you a little of his gentle concern every time he reprimands you for working too hard, but also of his unbridled excitement every time he gets to talking about aviation. It’s absurd that you’ve gone this long without fully appreciating his eyes, which glow like polished brass in the setting sun’s light. You catch a glimpse of the town below, so distant and quaint from this height. 

“We’ve known each other for a while now,” Harvey begins, “and I...er…” 

The air falls still around you, and for a moment you’re both frozen with uncertainty, as if waiting for permission from...yourselves, you suppose.

And then Harvey is kissing you. You experience the soft tickle of his mustache with delight, being unwilling all this time to admit that you were dying to know how it felt. The warmth of his body at this chilly altitude is unspeakably comforting, and you pull your arms tight around him, as if this could somehow quell the rapid pounding of his heart. 

In your enthusiasm you lose balance and tumble down into the basket of the balloon, dragging Harvey along with you. You laugh as your bodies crash clumsily together, but then the full reality of those bodies becomes distractingly loud. You glance shyly at Harvey and before you can exhale he is kissing you once more, hands and limbs entwining at every opportunity. Apparently, he's found  his courage.

After a breathless moment, Harvey breaks from your kiss. While you resent this, you have also learned he does most things for a good reason, so you hold back your greedy impulses and are blessed with the first smile he has managed since you left the ground. He gestures upwards with his eyes, and beyond the balloon’s round belly you see stars emerging in the darkening sky (maybe you’ve been kissing for longer than just a moment, you realize). You twist onto your backs and lie side-by-side and hand-in-hand as you are carried through the air, watching wisps of cloud drift past. 

You briefly consider that maybe someone should be driving this balloon, and then Harvey kisses your temple and you forget to be worried. Besides, of all the things Stardew Valley has given you in your time there, you realize that the most important one is already here with you, right now. You could be blown clear across the world and still have everything you need or want. 

Though you don’t exactly touch down on time, you do make it home at a reasonable hour, and in one piece. Dr. Harvey would approve of that. 


	7. You and Haley

You don’t know what you were expecting to find beyond the mysterious door in Haley’s room. Maybe a very big closet? Or...a tanning booth? At least, you weren’t expecting a dark room repurposed from a spare bathroom, awash in shadowy red light. If it weren’t for the palpable excitement in Haley’s smile when you enter, all of this would feel kind of spooky. 

“You’re here!” she exclaims, carefully laying a sheet of photo paper in fixative and giving it a little swirl. The room smells vaguely of chemicals, but also the sweet floral fragrance that accompanies Haley wherever she goes. You decide you like it.

“Welcome to my brand new dark room!” she says proudly, sweeping out an arm to gesture at her handiwork. Photos of flowers, birds and livestock are clipped to a line, and you hope to one day see those images outside of this room’s sinister red light. 

“So...what do you think?”

It’s easy to give Haley the compliments she’s looking for, and not just because you would probably say anything at all to make her happy. It’s a good looking dark room! You smile at her, hoping for a tour, or really whatever. You would be just as pleased to sit in the corner and watch her work for the rest of the evening. 

“Um, so anyway, what do you want to do?” Haley surprises you with this question. This is her house, after all -- were you supposed to come with your own agenda? You don’t have an agenda.  _ Do _ you? 

You are beginning to panic slightly, but then you notice how very still she’s standing just a few steps away, and how incredibly gorgeous she looks, even while lit like a haunted house vampire. Your eyes meet, and as a smile of unmistakable invitation crosses Haley’s face, you realize that you definitely do have an agenda. A roaring urge overcomes you as you step carefully and deliberately towards her, so full of anticipation you can mark every beat of your pounding heart. You are about to kiss Haley for the first time, after all. You want to remember every second of this moment. 

Following this kiss, which you absolutely will remember, Haley murmurs into your lips, “I’ve been waiting so long for you to do that.” 

You have no choice but to believe her, but also, how on earth is it possible that you are the person she’s saying that to? You’re a farmer who smells like outside and sometimes literal cow poop who regularly spends entire afternoons cutting bait and fishing in every available body of water. You’re...kind of gross, as Haley has unsubtly pointed out in the past. 

But the way she runs her fingers across your shoulders and down your arms indicates that she does not currently think you’re gross, quite the opposite in fact. Each perfectly-shaped nail digging into your skin sends a jolt of anticipation through your entire nervous system, and suddenly, you don’t feel like a gross farmer. You feel suave, dashing, irresistible, and maybe even...hot? It’s getting hot in here, at least. 

Emboldened by Haley’s touch, you slip both hands around her waist, her body against yours gives you so many feelings it’s confusing. You felt this way once as a kid, the first time you went to a Joja buffet, and you almost left without eating anything because the choices were so overwhelmingly wonderful. Haley’s lips, her hair, her collarbone, scent, her…everything, pulled so tantalizingly close, it might actually be too much. 

Haley saves you from your indecision, putting her lips right next to your ear and whispering, “One moment.” 

Slipping out of your arms, she reaches for the light switch, fixing a devilish look on you before the room goes completely dark. 

When Haley arrives in your arms once more, you are relieved to discover that she's had an agenda of her own this whole time. 


	8. You and Sam

You hold your breath under Sam’s covers, convinced that Jodi is about to find you, an adult farmer, in her technically-an-adult-but-this-still-looks-pretty-bad son’s room. But then Sam says something innocent, charming and convincing, and just like that Jodi’s fears are assuaged and she’s gone. You realize that it’s exactly this persuasiveness that has caused you to end up here in the first place; there’s something magnetic about Sam, something that makes you trust him implicitly and give him every vote of confidence. But watching this charm offensive wielded against his own mom makes you pause for a moment.  _ Is _ this a good idea? 

Sam says your name, and you suddenly decide that of course this is a good idea. You’ve never had a better one. 

He waits for you awkwardly in the middle of the room as you peek out from his blankets. It’s distracting how much they smell like him, like hair gel and body spray from Joja Mart and the soap Jodi keeps in their bathroom. For a second you hesitate -- maybe you could just stay here, and then he could just join you...

No, you decide. If you ever end up sharing a bed with Sam, it will be in your own house, because you are both technically adults, and that seems like a more acceptable way to go about it. With one very obvious exception, there’s a lot of things about this situation that you hope to never repeat. 

Sam smiles as you emerge from his bed, and your face grows hot under his attention. 

“Earlier, I was trying to say...that I really like you,” he explains, and you feel your blush deepen when he says your name again. 

Sam starts to put his hands in his front pockets, then his back pockets, before letting them fidget at his sides. The guitar propped against the wall catches your eye as you recall watching his fingers dance along the neck of the instrument. Right about now, you feel pretty sure you could give those restless hands something else to do. 

“I think we could really have something special together...know what I mean?” Sam looks up at you with true questioning in his eyes. 

You mean to nod at this or respond in literally any way, but those eyes disarm you to the point of stupidity. You know you’re staring, and you can’t even help it. 

“Alright, I said it,” he chuckles bashfully, turning a little red. You realize that if you don’t say or do something very soon, Sam is going to think that you snuck into his bedroom  _ and his bed _ for no reason, which would be unacceptable and also totally illogical, and you cannot allow this to happen under any circumstance. 

So you finally muster a step towards him, and he jumps as if he was not remotely expecting this turn of events. You both open your mouths to say something, then smile with flushed excitement because it’s ridiculous that you would waste any more time talking when you are desperate to be kissing.

And just like that, you’re kissing. 

As it turns out, Sam does not need any help figuring out what to do with his hands. 


	9. You and Sebastian

The cold night wind sends a prickle across your skin as you gaze over an incomprehensible expanse towards Zuzu City. Its glittering size reminds you of the years you spent traversing its sidewalks, subways and elevators, but from out here the whole thing also seems small enough to scoop into your hand and tuck in a pocket. Another stiff breeze sends a shiver down your back, and you notice how clean the air is, way up wherever you are. Life on the farm is always accompanied by certain fragrances: blossoms, rot, manure, grass—even the town, the ocean and the mines all carry their own aromas. Out here though, the wind smells like nothing but cold. Well, cold and Sebastian's cigarette. 

You'd never ridden on the back of someone's motorcycle before, and it kind of startled you how easily he proposed that you sit astride...well him basically, your arms clutching his waist with the intensity of a middle school slow dance. Having barely ever touched Sebastian at all, you spent an hour (or maybe more or less, the bike ride felt like an eternity and was also over too soon) practically spooning at 75 miles per hour. You tried not to notice how you could feel every breath inflating his ribs, or the places your own chest and middle pressed against his back, but it was pretty much the only thing you did think about. That is, it was the only thing on your mind when your stomach wasn't plummeting to your feet at every tilting turn. Sebastian steadied your wobbly dismount, and you went breathless with the thrill of someone extremely cool being nice to you. Just as quickly, he stepped away and lit a cigarette, keeping his distance out of courtesy or for some other reason. This was confusing, but you tried to take it in stride. 

For a while, you shared the space quietly, letting the din of frogs and crickets replace conversation. But now, after some mildly awkward small talk, Sebastian has stubbed out his smoke, turned to you and admitted that he's never brought anyone out here before. The light of the full moon casts him in a silhouette so that you can feel more than see him looking at you. 

"You know what I'm trying to say, don't you?" he says, and there's a glint of apprehension in the question. 

You stifle another shiver, which is probably from the wind but might be from something else, because in a few steps (somehow both deliberate and nonchalant, how is he so _cool_ ) the moonlit shadow that is Sebastian approaches and slides chilly fingertips around the nape of your neck. Something passes through your body that feels distinctly like surrender, and when his bitter-smoke kiss finds your lips you realize you'll give him pretty much anything he asks for, now or in the future. 

Sebastian's arms curl around you in an echo of your anxious motorcycle grip, and you're already expecting the way his breathing feels against you. He tastes like burnt diner coffee and smells like motor oil, and it takes a moment for the heat of his body to make its way to you through his wind-chilled clothes.

All of this strangely reminds you of your life in the city, with all its unpleasant yet comforting sensations. You remember bumming a smoke off a stranger outside a bar at 2 am, of making out with that stranger in a taxi, of scalded coffee in a paper cup bundled with a greasy breakfast sandwich the next morning. You remember how singular and satisfying it was, even if none of it was exactly _good_ for you, and realize you haven’t missed that life at all since you moved to Stardew Valley. 

This version of events—a windswept motorcycle ride, a god’s-eye view of the city and its tireless glow, the dreamt-of tobacco tang of Sebastian’s lips accompanied by a chorus of frogs instead of traffic—is immeasurably better and more beautiful, and you can’t believe you get to have it. 

Sebastian pauses for a second, as if sensing your wandering thoughts. His lips hover exactly at yours, waiting patiently for...you, you guess. You're startled by a hiccup of self-reflection: do you want this to be another weird one-off with a handsome stranger, or do you want this to mark the beginning of something bigger and real? You know what city-life you would have chosen. And you know what you choose today.

Pulling Sebastian tight, you find his lips, feeling a tiny smile form there before he kisses you back. You still wish he would quit smoking, but you also can't imagine anything tasting better than this. 

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading!


End file.
